What are your views about shielding children from unpleasant truths? When is it important for a child to know such truths? When is it better to keep a child in the dark? And, is it right for an adult to lie to a child to "protect" him or her?
I honestly don't believe that children should be exposed to such unpleasant truths, "in essence being stripped of their innocence." I believe it will be counter-productive to their education and could possibly scar them if they are not at the maturity level to handle the truths yet. Thus for the most part, I shall vouch in favor of those parents that shield their children from those unpleasant truths. You may be wondering why I haven't brought up the point that the question really depends on what age the children are. This is because I personally see the word "children" not so much as being a set in stone age, but rather a maturity level. In my perspective it is when a person finally understands and comes to grips with such unpleasant truths such as understanding that there is evil and hatred in our world, that that person has made the transition from a child to an adult. I believe that this transition period is very delicate and thus for the most part should be something that the child discovers by him or herself. For the latter part of the question regarding whether it is right or not for an adult to lie to a child to "protect" him or her I have two comments. First off, it really doesn't require lying to "protect" the child, but rather telling part of the truth or even misdirecting could be applied. More on the subject of the question though, if a child were to themselves ask a parent or adult about a topic that could provoke the unveiling of an unpleasant truth, I think that at that point it's the adults call of whether or not the child is ready to handle the knowledge.
I honestly don't believe that children should be exposed to such unpleasant truths, "in essence being stripped of their innocence." I believe it will be counter-productive to their education and could possibly scar them if they are not at the maturity level to handle the truths yet. Thus for the most part, I shall vouch in favor of those parents that shield their children from those unpleasant truths. You may be wondering why I haven't brought up the point that the question really depends on what age the children are. This is because I personally see the word "children" not so much as being a set in stone age, but rather a maturity level. In my perspective it is when a person finally understands and comes to grips with such unpleasant truths such as understanding that there is evil and hatred in our world, that that person has made the transition from a child to an adult. I believe that this transition period is very delicate and thus for the most part should be something that the child discovers by him or herself. For the latter part of the question regarding whether it is right or not for an adult to lie to a child to "protect" him or her I have two comments. First off, it really doesn't require lying to "protect" the child, but rather telling part of the truth or even misdirecting could be applied. More on the subject of the question though, if a child were to themselves ask a parent or adult about a topic that could provoke the unveiling of an unpleasant truth, I think that at that point it's the adults call of whether or not the child is ready to handle the knowledge.